


Sweet Encounters

by shirewalker



Category: The Grisha Trilogy - Leigh Bardugo
Genre: Alternate Universe - Bakery, Alternate Universe - Different First Meeting, Bakery, Christmas Fluff, F/M, First Meetings, Meet-Cute, Nikolina Appreciation Week 2020, Winter, figure skating AU, sorry tag wranglers the suggestions were all weird I couldnt find the right one
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-19
Updated: 2020-02-19
Packaged: 2021-02-28 01:21:00
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22805434
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shirewalker/pseuds/shirewalker
Summary: Alina's bakery gets an unexpected visitor: Nikolai Lantsov, the Ravkan renowned figure skater. Her celebrity crush. Who happens to like her from the second he sees her.Just another day at the bakery, obviously.--For Nikolina Appreciation Week 2020, day 6: Meet CuteInspired by a Christmas edit I got as a gift.
Relationships: Nikolai Lantsov/Alina Starkov
Comments: 2
Kudos: 26





	Sweet Encounters

All I Want for Christmas blasted through the little bakery, the radio host’s favourite song playing again for the third time that morning.

It’s not that Alina didn’t like the song, she just knew there was a whole world of Christmas tunes out there that she really wanted to hear as well. Plus, it made her just a little more touchy on the fact that being single was going to be her eternal future. There simply was no one to want for Christmas…

“Did you hear?” Genya whispered from the cashier spot, finishing up another sale just as Alina finished setting up the Christmas packages on the counter.

“Hear what?”

“Nikolai Lantsov, the renowned figure skater, is in town!” She said with a blinding smile, her red curls bouncing with her excitement, “Can you imagine? A star in our neck of the woods.”

Alina snorted and dusted off her hands before taking off her apron, “Pretty sure he’ll stick to star-preferred haunts. Like that brand new training centre. If you want his autograph you’ll have to go there.”

Genya pouted, “Aren’t you a little bit excited? I remember you blushing very hard when we watched the Winter Olympics for your eighteenth birthday.”

She fought a blush at the mention of her celebrity crush. Yes, she’d had a huge crush on the prince of the ice when she was a teen. He was a dreamboat. Back then and now. But she was an adult now, no time for crushes over pretty faces.

“Maybe if there was a chance of bumping into him. But I won’t go stalking the man for a glimpse of him.” She grabbed her purse and walked around the counter, “I’ll be back in an hour, need to buy more gluten-free flour. Think you can hold the fort?” She asked, even though both knew Genya could easily take care of Alina’s bakery.

Just as expected, Genya shot her a deadpan look, “I can even make it famous, Alina. Go on, I’ll be here.”

Alina smiled at her friend and left the bakery, her mind wandering to lands where she actually did bump into Nikolai Lantsov. Daydreaming a bit couldn’t hurt, right?

* * *

“Saints! This snowstorm is growing crazy, Alina!” Genya watched the wind howl outside like there was no tomorrow. Discarded newspaper flashed by the windows, and people huddled fast through the streets, looking like walking cocoons made of winter coats.

“Go home, Genya. I’ll close up.”

“Are you sure? What if you get a crazy influx and can’t handle all the frozen clients?”

“They’ll be frozen, it’ll make things easy.”

Genya rolled her eyes and watched the street again before giving a reluctant nod, “Fine, I’ll go. Take care, yes?”

“It’s just a little snowstorm, Gen. I’ll be fine.”

Genya grabbed her things and left without another word, the two fully aware that Alina would just repeat herself if her friend continued asking to stay.

Alina let out a sigh and turned to the counter behind her, decided to take the chance of having the bakery empty and arrange a few more bags of assorted cookies.

“I just want you for my own, more than you could ever know!” She hummed to the song, bobbing her head as her deft fingers worked fast through the packaging. And then, just as the song hit the high notes, the door rang open again. “Did you forget something, Genya?”

“I did forget something.” A voice that did not belong to Genya replied.

Alina froze in shock, trying to decide if her mind was playing tricks on her. Surely not…?”

“I left my phone in my room and can’t ask for a ride back to the hotel.” The voice continued, growing closer than Alina wanted. “Think I could use your phone? I promise to order all your best creations.”

Hands shaking, polite smile plastered as best as she could, Alina turned to her client. Her stomach danced like a flag in the wind as she found herself face to face with her celebrity crush.

“Mister Lantsov!” She let out in a breath, noticing how much taller he was in person. And how much broader his shoulders were. And saints… His hair shined like pure gold. Not to mention his eyes… Surely emeralds had been named after those eyes, right?

Nikolai Lantsov flashed a rueful smile and Alina almost forgot how to breathe. “Please, call me Nikolai.” His eyes took her in, widening ever so slightly as he seemed to become… impressed? Was her tiny frame impressive in any way to such a man? Maybe she had flour on her face?

He made a breathy sound that sounded like a “wow”.

Her stomach fluttered again.

“You… You said you needed a phone?” She stammered, trying not to look too starry eyed. And failing completely as her face grew hotter with each second Nikolai stared at her.

“Yes, yes.” He shook himself out of his spell and flashed a cocky, but apologetic, grin, “I need to make a call and your place was the first thing I saw through the snow.”

“Ah, that’s the sign Genya insisted I get last winter.”

His grin grew into a full cocky grin, “Must be fate then. Just so I could meet you.”

She rolled her eyes at the ridiculous line, “Yes, clearly I couldn’t go through life without hearing such a cliché line.”

Nikolai laughed out loud, his eyes crinkling with it. “Sunshine, you are… Amazing.”

“Sunshine?”

“Yes.” He paused, clearly not wanting to develop that little bit. Then he leaned on the counter and arched an eyebrow in his best charming expression. One Alina had seen in many, many interviews, “Can I pretty please use your phone?”

Feeling like she couldn’t let him know she’d had a crush on his beautiful face, Alina arched an eyebrow of her own, “Will you order anything?”

“Like I said, one of each of your best creations.” He gestured at her displays.

“All my creations are my best creations.” She said, daring him to back out.

Nikolai’s smile grew, something Alina hadn’t thought to be possible, and he leaned further, “Then I hope you have a very big box, sunshine. I’ll take them all.” Then he slid a large bill through the counter, “All of them.”

She stared at the bill, “Are you… going to have anything… here?” Was he mad? That was enough to pay at least two of each of her cookies, cakes and pastries. Hell, she could even throw in a personalised order!

Nikolai hummed, “Yes, maybe… let’s see…” He eyed the display where several red velvet cupcakes were on display, “Two of these. One with the white cream on top and the other with the black cream. What are they?”

She fought back a chuckle at the question, “White is white chocolate. Black is oreo.”

He hummed delighted, “Both sound delicious! Add a cappuccino to that order. And… phone?”

She was still a bit dizzy with this man and his magnetic force, but Alina managed to whisk out her phone and handed it to him, “Please don’t make it too long or too expensive.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it, sunshine.”

* * *

“So…” Alina finished cleaning up the public area, the wind still howling outside. No one walked through the streets anymore, except for one or another straggler. “What are you doing here? The training centre is on the other side of town.”

Nikolai settled down his third cupcake and shot her a crooked smile, “I don’t really train there.”

Alina stared at him for a moment, feeling the cogs turn in her head before she let out a soft gasp, “The lake? How…?”

“A friend who lives here suggested it for me. Quieter and away from the crowds. Perfect for proper training.”

“Isn’t the training centre prepared for proper training?”

“I like skating on the outdoors. It’s great for focus and to come up with ideas.” He paused, “Unless a snowstorm comes in.”

Alina couldn’t help but smile, “Yeah. That can put a damper on the mood.”

Nikolai’s eyes shined as he watched her smile, “Yes, although it did lead me here…” He smiled, “Thank the saints your friend insisted on that sign, sunshine.”

Her cheeks erupted with a violent blush as she realised Nikolai was watching her with interest, as if he wanted to commit every detail of her face to memory. She turned around and checked the bakery’s clock, “It’s almost closing time, you know?”

He nodded, “Yes, Tolya should be here any moment.” Maybe it was Alina’s mind playing tricks on her, but the world renowned figure skater sounded… disappointed.

“I’m just saying because this storm seems to be getting worse. You don’t want to be out there if it does.” Why? Why had she said this? What next? Invite him upstairs? “And if you enjoyed those cupcakes so much, I’ll be open tomorrow as normal, anyway.” Oh no. Not inviting him upstairs, only letting him know she’d be here again the next day. Saints, Alina wanted to slap herself.

Nikolai, unaware of her inner turmoil, beamed with her words, “Oh, I’ll definitely return, sunshine. I’ve never had such great cupcakes, or service.” He added with a twinkle in his eye, as if he meant to say more but kept it to himself. Maybe out of not sounding like a creep.

A car honked loudly outside, startling the two out of their shared moment.

Alina turned to look through the blinds, “It’s a black car, tinted windows. I’m guessing it’s your ride?”

Nikolai walked to the window and watched the vehicle for a moment before smiling at her, “Yes, the wheels have a white stripe on them with a pattern of a sea serpent.” When Alina stared at him a bit confused, Nikolai gave her a half-shrug, “I needed something that would be recognizable to me. Something I knew people would try to copy for nefarious purposes but with details only I could recognize.”

“Okay, how can you see the pattern?”

“I have great eyesight!” He beamed before chuckling, “You see that one?” He pointed to the closest wheel. “The pattern has a flaw on it. Wasn’t on purpose, but once I noticed it I decided to keep it.”

“Makes it more unique.”

“Indeed.”

Alina found herself staring into his eyes, close enough to notice tiny details like the way the green in his eyes faded into deep browns with a crooked line of bright, golden yellow in the middle. The green reminded her of the pine trees that surround the lake he’d visited, and the brown reminded her of her favourite shade of chocolate cake. The one she’d come up with after spending a whole afternoon among said trees. Saints, Nikolai’s eyes reminded her of her favourite place.

Suddenly she realised how much closer Nikolai was. Panic took over, her heart hammering fast with the simple realisation that if she wanted she could simply… kiss him.

Clearing her throat, Alina rushed to the counter, “Well, you should go now. Don’t risk your health and all that. Here’s your order. I hope you enjoy it all, but please don’t eat it all at once. I’d hate to be the reason Ravka’s best figure skater got sick.”

Nikolai’s mouth quirked in a soft smile, his eyes shining with amusement. Oh, he knew what had almost happened. “I look forward to carefully tasting all of your creations, sunshine. And to come back.”

“Oh, you don’t have…”

“Oh, but I do. This place is heaven. And you are…” He bit his lip and shrugged, “I shall stop myself before I sound like an utter creep. Just believe me when I say that you are a good enough reason to come back.” He took the box, and their fingers brushed for a moment.

Alina let out a soft gasp.

Nikolai looked down for a moment, before looking back into her eyes, that soft smile still on his mouth, “It was a pleasure to meet you, Alina. Take care, there’s a storm outside. I hear it’s serious.” Then he winked at her. And left the bakery with a final glance over his shoulder, those eyes promising at least one more encounter.

Mariah Carey finished her song again, her voice carrying the tune perfectly. Alina let out a shuddered breath and realised that, for the first time ever, she very much felt like singing it out loud and with plenty of feeling.

Tomorrow just couldn’t come any faster. She finally had someone she wanted for Christmas.

**Author's Note:**

> Shoutout to my friend Nickie on tumblr for that awesome edit that inspired this fic!! THANK YOU!!!!
> 
> comments/fangirling rocks my world <3


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